Photo by Scrumshus - Own work, Public Domain Work is about to begin in earnest on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017 provisions set to expire at the end of 2025. With Donald J. Trump returning to the Oval Office, Republicans will have, as they did when the tax reform bill passed eight years ago, control of the House, Senate, and White House. The only thing that appears to be standing in the GOP’s way is dollars. Tax cuts’ ongoing costs: Extending the expiring provisions of the Trump tax cuts could cost as much as $4 trillion... Read more →
Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Danny Werfel speaking to students, faculty, and IRS guests at the Kogod Tax Center at American University in Washington, D.C., in March 2024 about the tax agency's digital transformation plan. In addition to tax code changes expected this year, the federal agency charged with enforcing those laws also is getting a shakeup. Donald J. Trump announced in December he wants former Missouri congressman Billy Long to lead the Internal Revenue Service. While Long is expected to be approved given the Republican majority in the Senate, he has some issues that will be raised during his confirmation... Read more →
Washington, D.C., is no stranger to severe winter weather, as this photo of snowbound Dupont Circle in 2010 shows. Snow and frigid temperatures are putting a damper on next week's presidential inauguration. (Photo via Wikipedia) Donald J. Trump’s second inauguration is Monday, Jan. 20, but not as originally planned. An Arctic Blast next week across much of the country, including the Washington, D.C. area, means the official swearing in ceremony will be moved indoors, to the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. The change obviously is a disappointment for many of the Trump supporters who traveled to the national capital to witness the... Read more →
Photo by Anna Shvets from Pexels The 2025 tax season officially starts Jan. 27, and millions of taxpayers are working on their returns. Some, however, are asking whether they must file a Form 1040 at all. I hate to dash your no-filing hopes, but the answer probably is yes. When you make money, it’s generally a safe bet that the Internal Revenue Service will want to know about it, and collect a portion. But not always. Here's a look at whether you might be among the select few legal nonfilers. Basic filing requirements: Generally, if you are a U.S. citizen... Read more →
Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay Even in those few years when Congress mercifully stays out of major messing with the Internal Revenue Code, we taxpayers still encounter some changes at return filing time. Here are some highlights of what you might find as you file your taxes this year. Standard deduction amount increased. Around 90 percent of taxpayers claim the standard deduction. The choice was always the favorite, in large part because it’s easy. The numbers are show directly on Form 1040. But the number of standard deduction claims increased when the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 essentially... Read more →
Don’t forget to pay your final 2024 tax year estimated tax amount by tomorrow, Jan. 15. I know. I’m cutting it close with my reminder. But if your life is as hectic as mine is right now and this tax task has crept up on you, then better late than never. Electronic options: Since time is of the essence, the fastest and easiest way to pay is electronically. Those options include — Debit or credit card or digital wallet. This is fast, easy, and familiar to most of us. The two Internal Revenue Service-approved vendors Pay1040 and ACI Payments, Inc.... Read more →
The Internal Revenue Service will start processing 2024 tax year returns on Jan. 27. Millions of people will file then, or before, getting their forms into Uncle Sam’s tax queue. But to file a complete and accurate Form 1040, you need all the information that form requests. That’s generally income statements like W-2s and 1999s. But there are many other documents that have tax-filing relevance. And most of those aren’t require by law to be sent to you until the end of January. So, most of us are just going to have to be patient for a couple more weeks.... Read more →
UPDATE, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025: California officials also are offering taxpayers in Los Angeles County a postponement on filing 2024 state tax returns and making tax payments that would have been due between January 7 and October 15, 2025. The extent and ferocity of the wind-propelled Palisades fire is, in many cases, an insurmountable challenge for Los Angeles, California, firefighters. (Photo by CAL FIRE_Official - Palisades Fire, Public Domain) California firefighters, joined by their brethren from other states and Canada and Mexico, are still struggled to contain the catastrophic wildfires that have engulfed the Los Angeles metropolitan area. Since the... Read more →
That last Monday in January is when the Internal Revenue Service will start processing all 2024 tax year returns, including those filed earlier by taxpayers who qualified to use the already open Free File program. Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich It’s official. Tax season 2025 starts Monday, Jan. 27. The Internal Revenue Service says it expects more than 140 million individual 2024 tax year returns to be filed by the April 15 deadline. IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel, who could be overseeing his final filing season if incoming president Donald J. Trump follows through on his plans for the agency, says the... Read more →
If you used Free File last year to complete your federal taxes, then the 2025 version, which opened today, is mostly déjà vu. The same eight tax software companies are participating. One of them will offer software for Spanish speakers. The main difference this year is that the Internal Revenue Service/Free File Alliance partnership can be used by taxpayers whose adjusted gross income (AGI) is $84,000. That’s five grand more than last year’s AGI threshold, but it still applies to all filers, regardless of filing status. Same 8 software options: The eight returning private-sector tax software companies that are part... Read more →
The Internal Revenue Service this week officially announced Free File will open on Friday, Jan. 10, to eligible taxpayers (those with adjusted gross income of $84,000 or less). In that statement, the agency also indirectly told us the main tax filing season will begin on Monday, Jan. 27. But taxpayers in 24 states are still waiting to hear when in 2025 Direct File, the IRS’ own online tax preparation and e-filing software will be available. The tax agency was so pleased with Direct File’s pilot last year, it expanded not only the software offerings, but also doubled the number of... Read more →
Millions are getting ready to file federal tax returns so they can collect refunds. Crooks are among them. And things get even worse for the taxpayers whose identities were stolen and used to file false returns claiming fraudulent refunds. The average time it took the Internal Revenue Service to resolve identity theft cases and issue refunds to the affected victims in fiscal year 2024 was two years, according the National Taxpayer Advocate’s 2024 annual report to Congress, issued today. These delays impacted nearly half a million taxpayers, noted National Taxpayer Advocate (NTA) Erin M. Collins, and were even worse than... Read more →
Updated, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 Millions of taxpayers already are filling out their 2024 tax returns. Now they just need to know when the Internal Revenue Service will start processing them. On Friday, Jan. 10, Free File opens. The no-cost online tax preparation and e-filing option can be used by taxpayers whose adjusted gross income (AGI) is $84,000 or less. Business taxpayers will be able to electronically file their returns on Jan. 15. As for individual filers who make more than the Free File AGI threshold, they can start using Free File's Fillable Forms on Jan. 27. That date follows... Read more →
Photo by Matheus Bertelli Happy New Year! I know, we’re well past the Jan. 1 hangover phase, but it is the first full work week of 2025, so I stand by my greeting. And I up it with Happy New Tax Year! On Jan. 20, Republicans who crafted that major tax reform bill will be in control of all three branches of federal government. They plan to keep and, if reports are true, expand the TCJA. As for paying for all those tax breaks, well that's another matter. Like I said, exciting tax times ahead. But while lawmakers on Capitol... Read more →
The first group of taxpayers in 14 states and two U.S. island territories hit by declared major disasters must get their forms to the IRS by Feb. 3. Residents in the other 10 states have until May 1. Photo by Analogue Kid at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 Much of the United States is facing the first weather catastrophe of the new year. A brutal winter storm is forecast to sweep through a 1,300-mile swath of the country, leaving an estimated 62 million people to deal with heavy snow, ice, rain, and severe thunderstorms. This early 2025 burst of anger... Read more →
Photo by Lara Jameson Change is a constant when it comes to life. And since taxes are a big part of life, that means we deal with tax code changes, too. At the federal level, that happens automatically every year when the Internal Revenue Service makes inflation adjustments to a wide variety of existing laws. Congress also tends to get involved. That didn’t happen so much in 2024. Perhaps Capitol Hill lawmakers were saving up for this year’s coming tax battles over expiring Tax Cuts and Jobs Act individual tax provisions. Then we have state taxes. There usually are changes... Read more →
It's ready, set, almost go for tax season 2025. The Internal Revenue Service has set Jan. 15 as the date it will start accepting electronically filed 2024 tax year business returns. (Photo by BOOM 💥) We have a start date for the Internal Revenue Service's 2025 tax filing season! But hold your celebrations, tax-filing early birds. It’s not for everyone. Wednesday, Jan. 15, is the day the IRS will begin accepting electronically filed business returns. That's a day earlier than it started processing business filings last year, but still about two weeks earlier than the agency is expected to start... Read more →
Some older workers can contribute even more in catch-up contributions to their workplace retirement plans starting in 2025. (Photo by Andrea Piacquadio) Welcome to the first work day of 2025! At least it’s a short week. And some folks also are thinking about the day they no longer have to return to an office at all. The start of a new year is a good time to focus on your eventual retirement. To ensure that your post-work years are what you want, you need to start or continue saving. The Internal Revenue Code (IRC) can help, thanks to the various... Read more →
AARP While we were ringing in 2025, some new tax laws took effect when the clock officially clicked over to Jan. 1. Since I know many of you, and by you I mean me, have hangovers from eating, drinking and/or just plain staying up way past your normal bedtime last night (I'm guilty of all three!), I’m going to ease into the tax news on this first day of the brand New Year. I’m starting with a couple of reminders of tax changes announced as last year was winding down. You got it. The Internal Revenue Service's annual inflation adjustments... Read more →